DJ Turner – Page 7 – Syndication Server

Three keys to a Michigan victory vs. Colorado State

Excited to see this team back in action on Saturday! #GoBlue

Michigan fans can rejoice. Football is back in Ann Arbor on Saturday when the maize and blue will host Colorado State for the home opener.

Michigan is coming off of a magical season in 2021 where it defeated rival Ohio State to make it to the Big Ten Championship game. The Wolverines beat Iowa with ease to make their first College Football Playoff appearance. Ultimately, the maize and blue ended the season ranked No. 3 in the nation.

The Wolverines enter the 2022 season ranked No. 6 in the USA TODAY Coaches Poll and No. 8 in the AP Poll.

The Rams will enter Ann Arbor after finishing 3-9 in 2021, but Colorado State hired Jay Norvell away from Nevada where he coached the past five years. Colorado State not only changed its offensive philosophy with Norvell at the helm, but the Rams bring 59 new players onto the team from 2021.

Michigan is a heavy favorite to win the game against the Rams and here are our three keys for a Wolverines’ win on Saturday.

The game will be aired nationally on ABC on Saturday at noon EDT.

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DJ Turner recalls how nervous he was on Raiders cutdown day, ‘great feeling’ of making roster

Raiders WR DJ Turner takes us through what cutdown day is like for a roster hopeful and the ‘great feeling’ of breaking thru.

One of the best stories of Raiders training camp this year has been DJ Turner. The former undrafted receiver and return specialist spent last season the Raiders’ practice squad and entered this year looking up at several new additions at his position. And he defied the odds to break though to the regular season roster.

Turner broke through in large part by thriving in two areas the Raiders had a need — slot receiver and return man.

Obviously the team has one of the best slot receivers in the league in Hunter Renfrow. But they needed depth behind him. In addition, it would be nice to not have Renfrow returning punts anymore. Turner came in and solved both problems and in so doing, watched as other former starting receivers Demarcus Robinson and Keelan Cole were cut instead of him.

It wasn’t exactly a sure thing, however. Right up to the minute the cuts came down on Tuesday, Turner was uneasy about his chances of making the team.

“I just kind of tried to stay off my phone. I made sure it wasn’t on silent, just in case it does ring I’d be there to pick it up,” said Turner of the day leading up to the cuts. “But I just tried to occupy myself with anything else to be honest and tried to keep my mind off of it. Like I had my kids at home, just trying to play with them until I had to come to the facility.”

“I came into building to do a walk thru and to do a lift, and I was just nervously walking around,” Turner added. “You never know if somebody’s going to call you, grab you at any point.”

One problem for those who make the roster is it’s a ‘no news is good news’ situation. You stay by the phone hoping it doesn’t ring.

“That’s the thing. It’s not like somebody calls you like, ‘Hey, congratulations’,” said Turner. “Nobody calls you and that’s kind of your sign that you’re good. Even after one o’clock, it wasn’t an official thing that came out.”

Turner knew he had at least put himself in great position to have reason to be excited about the possibility he made the roster.

The preseason game against the Vikings in particular, Turner led the team with 58 yards on three catches one of which went for a 34-yard touchdown. He added a 26-yard punt return.

“Special teams is as important, if not more important, than any other phase of the game,” Turner said of what he feels ultimately earned him his roster spot. “Especially in this level, you’ve got to be able to do everything. So I spent some time back there returning, but I also tried to hone in on being a gunner, being a guy on kickoff. . . I feel like versatility in all four phases of special teams is big for everybody, not just myself.”

Even with the impression he was clearly making, it was no guarantee he wasn’t going to be a victim of a numbers game at his position. Until it was official, he wasn’t counting on it happening. But once that clock hit 1pm, he finally knew it. It was real. He could finally celebrate breaking through that barrier.

“Just between leaving here and getting home – that ride – I kind of just took to myself,” Turner recalled. “I had some family members calling. I was trying not to answer every phone call just so I could actually take that time and just reflect on this past year and even my college years and high school as well because it’s been a long journey. But that was a great moment for me, for myself and then it all came together once I got home with my family and they kind of welcomed me in and we all celebrated. It was a great feeling.”

Turner knows making the team is just a milestone in a longer journey. The first-year man now embarks on the task of keeping his job and making it into a career. It will be fun to see if he can take this opportunity and run with it.

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Gemon Green, DJ Turner said the focus is on creating more turnovers this year

Love the focus of the defense!

Michigan football had a stellar year in 2021 after it won 12 games which included the beating of Ohio State and Iowa in the Big Ten Championship game. The Wolverines not only had a great running attack, but they had a stout defense which ranked No. 8 in scoring defense (17.4 points-per-game) and 20th in total defense (330.9 yards allowed-per-game).

The only knock on the defense, that lost eight starters from last year, was the lack of turnovers it created. Michigan ranked 98th last year in the fact it only created 1.1 turnovers-per-game. The Wolverines finished 2021 with eight interceptions and eight fumble recoveries.

Now that we are onto the 2022 campaign, Jim Harbaugh has stated that he believes the defense could be just as good as last season, if not better.

“I think its potential, and I think you’re kind of seeing it develop before your own eyes, I think that our defense could be better,” said Harbaugh on ‘In The Trenches’ podcast. “A no-star defense. I’ve been a part of many of them that were the great defenses. It creates more competition within the position, guys are more hungry.”

While Michigan is replacing ample amount of starters along the defense, the Wolverines still return an abundance of experience. In the secondary, Michigan is replacing three starters, but you might as well say Michigan returns two starting corners. Vincent Gray, who declared early, started all season in 2021, and Gemon Green were the starting corners when 2021 began, but eventually DJ Turner became the starter in place of Green.

On Monday, Gemon Green talked about how he thought about forgoing his eligibility but injuries hampered him in 2021, so he wanted to come back and play with his team another year. He stated that he has had a great camp, and with the younger corners pushing him, it has made him have a great camp in order to be named a starter.

“You’re right. I had a great camp”, said Green. “You know, just getting back in the playbook and trying to stay focused. I’m having the young guys like Will (Johnson), Myles Pollard, DJ Turner all pushing me and stuff. So that’s pretty much why I had a great camp.”

Green had one interception last season, but in this three years of playing in Ann Arbor, that has been his lone interception. The senior told the media Monday that he has really focused on adjusting his head when the ball is coming his way, and keeping his eyes on the ball.

“Oh, for me, personally, I just adjust my head back and get my eyes on the ball,” said Green. “That’s what I’ve been working on this all fall camp and spring ball as a whole, you know, our job is to play faster, know our keys. Everybody execute their jobs and everbody do thier one-of-11.”

The Michigan secondary is looking to force more turnovers this season. This is the second season that the secondary has worked with Steve Clinkscale, and both Green and DJ Turner says that the focus has been on creating more turnovers this season. Since Harbaugh has said that he believes this could be an even better defense in 2022, Green quickly said to meet his standards, Michigan must get more interceptions — which the speed of the 2022 team may help.

“Well, to meet that standard, I think we need more picks to be honest,” said Green. “We need more turnovers as a whole as a defense fumbles and picks. To be honest, I think we felt we were a lot faster than last year. So it’s gonna be a lot of it’s gonna be a big difference from last year.”

Fellow corner, DJ Turner, amplified what Green said on Monday. He noted that the main thing in camp has been creating more turnovers, and he feels that Michigan will be playing very confident on that side of the ball.

“I would say get turnovers will be the main thing that we’ll be focusing on this year,” said Turner. “More interceptions and just play confident that’s the thing and I feel like that’s what we’re gonna do going into the season.”

This will be the third season now that Green and Turner have been on the field together. Earlier, Green said that the younger guys have really been pushing him in camp, like Turner. He says that when he’s having a bad day, Turner is there to ger him going again, and when he see’s Turner make a play, he wants to make a play. In other words, the two feed off of each other.

“Just like pushing each other like at practice and everything,” said Green. “Whenever I’m having like a bad day, he turned me up. Sometimes it makes me go crazy. We have some time you make a play, I want to make a play. So like we just bring each other like together.”

Turner was also asked about the relationship the two starting corners share. Turner said that they both share three strong qualities, and they both talk things out together — like teammates should do.

“Both of us are physical, both of us are fast, both of us love to compete,” said Turner. “I mean and we just always try to help each other out. Like we were going to the sideline, I ask him what did you see, what did I see, and we always just try to mix and match to try to you know make the best of both worlds.”

While it appears the two starting corner spots are filled for the time being, Jim Harbaugh has said that Mike Sainristil is going to be starting in the base package at nickel. Sainristil was a corner in high school, so the position isn’t new to him, and Green said on Monday that the converted receiver is a playmaker on the defensive side of the ball.

“He learned the defense really quick,” said Green. “He started playing defense in the spring. And he got on the playbook fast. So he’s been a playmaker, he’s gonna be a dog. And him being a captain, you know, he gives us that energy every day as in the DB room and as a team. So he’s in a great place.”

Michigan will kickoff the season this Saturday, Sept. 3 in Ann Arbor against Colorado State. With the depth and speed at the corner spot, it will be intriguing to see if this team can get off to a hot start forcing a turnover or two.

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Two Wolverines listed in ESPN’s top 100 players for 2022

Think more should be included on this list. #GoBlue

The Wolverines are coming off the best season they have had since 1997. Michigan defeated Ohio State, won the Big Ten, and made its first College Football Playoff appearance before faltering to Georgia. The maize and blue finished No. 3 in the final AP poll.

Michigan did lose a lot on defense, but the Wolverines return just about everyone on the offensive side of the ball, and they gained Olu Oluwatimi at center, who transferred from Virginia after being the Rimington Award runner-up in 2021.

With so many key pieces coming back for the 2022 season, you would think that Michigan would have multiple players in the ESPN top-100 college football players for the 2022 season.

Not the case at all.

There were more than 11,000 votes cast by ESPN voters, and it was based on one-on-one votes on how the top 100 was created.

The first Michigan player that was ranked was Blake Corum at No. 79.

RB, Michigan, Junior
Notable 2021 stats: 952 yards, 11 TDs
Last year’s ranking: NR

As a sophomore last season, Corum ran for 952 yards and 11 touchdowns on 143 carries as the Wolverines won the school’s first Big Ten title since 2004 on the way to the College Football Playoff. With Hassan Haskins gone, Corum is Michigan’s undisputed top back.

The second player, and the final one, ranked was DJ Tuner at No. 86.

CB, Michigan, Senior
Notable 2021 stats: 33 tackles (26 solo), 2 INT
Last year’s ranking: NR

Turner appeared in all 14 of Michigan’s games in 2021 — starting eight. He had 33 tackles to go with nine pass breakups and a pair of interceptions during his junior year. Turner, an All-Big Ten honorable mention selection, recorded a career-high nine tackles in the Wolverines’ 42-27 victory over Ohio State.

A few players that we think could have been ranked in the top 100 would include Olu Oluwatimi, Ronnie Bell, Mazi Smith, Erick All, and Junior Colson.

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Michigan football defensive players dominate The Athletic’s ‘freaks’ list, including No. 1 overall

For all of the talk of the defense taking a step back, maybe it’s a freak show instead? #GoBlue

Death, taxes, and a Michigan football defensive lineman at or near the top of Bruce Feldman’s annual ‘freaks’ list. Like Thanos, these things are inevitable.

Last year, Aidan Hutchinson, the second-overall NFL draft pick, was No. 2 in The Athletic’s perennial look into the freakiest athletes in college football. The year before, Kwity Paye was Feldman’s No. 1. This year is no different, with another No. 1 across college football going to the Wolverines.

The interesting thing here is that outside observers expect the maize and blue to have one of the most explosive offenses in the country, but have major questions on defense. Yet, Feldman includes four Wolverines on his list of 100 (usually one or two Michigan players make the cut) and all four of his inclusions from Ann Arbor come from the defensive side of the ball.

The distinction of being at the very top this season this season goes to Michigan interior lineman Mazi Smith, who goes ahead of an Ohio State wide receiver — an impressive feat, given Smith comes in at 337-pounds.

Here’s why Feldman says that the senior defensive tackle is the freakiest athlete in college football.

1. Mazi Smith, Michigan, defensive tackle

His former teammate, Aidan Hutchinson, almost was our top guy in 2021, but this year a Wolverine is the No. 1 Freak in college football. The 6-foot-3, 337-pound senior has rare power and agility. So rare, in fact, it’s hard to find the right superlative to begin with. But let’s start with this: Smith does 22 reps on the bench press, but that’s with 325 (not 225). He close-grip benched 550 pounds. He vertical-jumps 44 inches. He broad-jumped 9-4 1/2. Smith, who had 37 tackles last season, has clocked a 4.41 shuttle time, which would’ve tied the best by any defensive tackle at this year’s NFL Scouting Combine, and it would’ve been better than any defensive tackle weighing 310 pounds or more in the past decade. His 6.95 3-cone time would’ve been by far the fastest among defensive tackles in Indianapolis. The fastest was 7.33. Smith’s 60-yard shuttle time is 11.90.

The Wolverines do a reactive plyo stairs test, which is a series of seven 26-inch high stairs that players attempt to jump up as fast as possible. The team record is 2.21 seconds. Smith did it in 2.82. To better gauge just how impressive that is, Hutchinson, some 60 pounds lighter than Smith, did it in 2.57.

Even more remarkable: The Wolverines also do a workout on their combo-twist machine, which is designed to show a player’s ability to rotate an opponent but also their ability to resist being rotated in the trenches. Smith had the machine completely tapped out. There was only enough room for 300 pounds on each side of the machine for a 600-pound max.

“For Mazi, it wasn’t even challenging,” says one of the Wolverine strength coaches. A staffer called the manufacturer to see if there was a way to extend it, then ultimately contacted a private company to build custom extenders for the combo-twist, which made it capable of loading up to 800 pounds to accommodate Smith.

“Mazi’s rotational strength is ridiculous,” said longtime Michigan strength coach Ben Herbert, who said Smith is the strongest defensive lineman he’s seen in 25 years in the business. “He is an incredible combination of rare traits packaged into one player. He is just ridiculously strong and powerful.”

But Mazi was far from the only Wolverine to make the cut. Here’s who else Feldman says is something to behold in nature.

NEXT, a return player from last year’s list.

Pages: 12

DJ Turner says Mike Sainristil ‘will make noise this year’ on the defensive side of the ball

Super pumped to see him play this year! #GoBlue

INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. — On November 4th, 2018 a three-star recruit would commit to Michigan and he was listed as a cornerback by 247Sports. Mike Sainristil, from Everett (Massachusets), was ranked as the 595th player in the country and the 59th corner by 247Sports composite.

Since signing with Michigan, Sainristil — who played both ways in high school — has played receiver with the Wolverines. In his three seasons playing at wide-out, the 5-foot-10 speedster has compiled 36 career catches, 532 yards, and five touchdowns.

The maize and blue return just about every major skill player at the position in 2022, so the Wolverines have been doing some tinkering with the former corner. Jim Harbaugh said back in March that Sainristil was playing corner and nickel. But Harbaugh said back then that he could play one, two, or three ways. Harbaugh elaborated back in March that it was due to the skill set that Sainristil has.

“He is right now, yeah,” Harbaugh said. “Mike has been playing corner and nickel corner for the start of the spring ball. Project him as a two-way player, maybe a three-way player. His skill set. He’s got the skill set for it. He’s got the skill set for receiver. He’s got the skill set for corner, for nickel corner. Skill set reminds me a lot of Jimmy Ward and what he had in college. Yeah, skill set.”

In April, when the Wolverines took the field for the spring game, we could see what Harbaugh was talking about. Sainrsitl looked natural at the position and had great closing speed.

During Big Ten media days on Tuesday, fellow corner DJ Turner was asked about a surprise player this upcoming season. He didn’t hesitate at all when he said Sainristil.

“I said Mike Sainristil moving on the defense,” said Turner on Tuesday. “He will make noise this year. I’m confident on that. So I said Mike.”

Did it shock Turner how quickly Sainrsitl picked up the position? Not at all. Turner noted that he played the position back in high school and the hardest part about learning corner — or re-learning in this case — was the playbook. But Turner says that Sainristil has that down now, so it’s just a matter of getting comfortable.

“I mean, he played DB in high school,” said Turner during Big Ten media days. “And I mean, he always jokes around with me that he’s a DB but I mean, it didn’t surprise me at all. He got in there. He just got comfortable. I mean, the hardest part for him was just getting the playbook. I mean, he got it now. So now just getting comfortable with and going into the season. It didn’t surprise anybody though. No, that’s why we did. It was like now you can do it.”

Quarterback Cade McNamara had similar sentiments. McNamara talked about the possibilities of Sainristil playing both ways and noted how smart of a player he is. McNamara says that the athlete knows a lot about every position and his role on the team is going to be really big this year.

“Yeah, Mike, he’s a really smart player, he is,” said McNamara. “He knows coverage, he knows how to affect man coverage. He knows. He knows a lot about just about every position. And I think because of that, he’s able to balance it so well. And I think his role on the team this year is gonna be big. And I’m just excited to see him shine through.”

It will be interesting to see how Michigan decides to utilize the skill set of Sainristil this year. Really, the possibilities are endless for Jim Harbaugh and his staff. It would seem that Sainrsitl is going to have a major impact on the defensive side of the ball, but he also has the potential to be a major contributor on the offensive side of the ball.

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Michigan defense breaks down Georgia’s quarterbacks

It’ll be interesting to see how the defense performs against the Georgia offense. #GoBlue

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DANIA BEACH, Fla. — Though much of the talk when it comes to matchups in the Capital One Orange Bowl has been centered on the Michigan offense against the Georgia defense, perhaps just as important is how the Wolverine defense fares against the Bulldog offense.

While UGA wants to run the ball, just as Michigan does, it’ll be crucial for Georgia, if it wants to have success, for whoever is under center to have a good game. Unfortunately for whoever that may be — whether it’s Stetson Bennett or J.T. Daniels — the Wolverines pass rush will have something to say about that.

It’s presumed that Bennett will retain his starting position and play at least the bulk of the game, as he presents options for the Bulldogs not just in passing, but also running if plays break down. Naturally, the Wolverines are already ready for his mobility.

“Yeah, I think the strengths of this Michigan defense match up really well,” linebacker Josh Ross said. “You’ve got a quarterback in Stetson Bennett who’s a consistent quarterback and extends plays, and as a defense we have to do a really good job stopping the run on 1st and 2nd down and having a great game plan on 3rd down and getting off the field.”

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“Yeah, Josh is right,” edge rusher Aidan Hutchinson added. “He’s a very mobile quarterback, so that’s definitely a point of emphasis, but first things first, we’ve got to stop that run game. That’s definitely the point of emphasis, and then get them to 3rd-and-long and let us rush the passer and get after it.”

But what if J.T. Daniels ends up getting a significant amount of play? How are the Wolverines preparing for both?

“I’d say they’re both good quarterbacks, and we just know that we just always have to make the tackle,” cornerback DJ Turner said. “They’re really good quarterbacks and make good reads.”

”Yeah, mobile, know how to sit in the pocket, too,” edge rusher David Ojabo added. “You’ve just got to account for them at all points.”

The Capital One Orange Bowl kicks off at 7:30 p.m. EST at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens.

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Georgia-native Michigan defensive players share outlook for playoff matchup

The Michigan football defense vs. the Georgia offense will be an interesting matchup!

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ANN ARBOR, Mich. — It seems no matter who you’re playing, there’s always going to be some internal reason why Michigan football holds some sort of grudge.

Though we’re used to seeing it more with rivals Ohio State and Michigan State, the same can be said for Georgia, the Wolverines’ next opponent come Dec. 31 in the College Football Playoff. And that’s because there’s a handful of players who grew up in the Peach State.

The highest-profile, of course, is third-year defensive tackle Christopher Hinton, who grew up in Norcross, near Atlanta, and was heavily recruited by the Bulldogs. Despite their perpetual advances, Hinton was one of the Wolverines’ earliest commits in the 2019 recruiting class, and never wavered, no matter how much the hometown team pushed.

“I’m not gonna lie, I’m pretty excited for this game,” Hinton said. “I grew up with a lot of guys, know a lot of guys. Obviously was recruited by them pretty hard. It’s the hometown team, but I’m excited to play Georgia, for sure.”

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For third-year cornerback DJ Turner, it’s something of a similar story, even though he wasn’t nearly as early of a pledge. Turner starred at North Gwinnett before transferring to IMG Academy in Bradenton, Florida for his senior year and also had an offer from UGA.

He’s looking forward to suiting up against several players he’s gotten the opportunity to know throughout the years.

“It’s big,” Turner said. “From Georgia, it’s real big. I’m excited, I’m looking forward to playing in it.

“I know a whole bunch of them (players at Georgia). I played with them a whole bunch. Yeah, I know a whole bunch of them.”

Hinton, in particular, seems to have a lot of familiarity with a lot of the players on the Dawgs’ roster given his time playing football in greater Atlanta. Turner notes he also knows quite a few Bulldogs, but Hinton both played with and against several stars he’ll be seeing come Dec. 31.

“Me and Dominick Blaylock grew up together,” Hinton said. “Travon Walker and Nolan Smith, we spent a lot of time together during the recruiting process. I played against Justin Shaffer, the guard, in the playoffs. I played against Jamaree Solyer and Kearis Jackson in high school, and Kenny McIntosh, played against him in basketball. So, I know a lot of those guys. It’s gonna be fun.”

That said, what do they expect from the Georgia offense?

“They’re a really good team. They’ve got four really good backs they use differently, so we’ve gotta be prepared for that,” Hinton said. “They come out in certain personnels, give you different looks, so we’ve gotta be prepared for that. They were the No. 1 team in the country for the whole year, so we know what we have at hand. But we’re a good team, too. We’re gonna prepare these next couple weeks and be ready for UGA.”

“They’re a good, balanced team,” Turner said. “They can run the ball and pass the ball. And they’ve got playmakers. So we’ve gotta be ready.”

For Turner, he feels a bit bolstered not just from recent success, but considering there appears to be some consternation in Athens about whether or not it will be Stetson Bennett IV or J.T. Daniels under center, given Michigan’s quarterback rotation, he feels that the defensive backs will be uniquely prepared.

“Yeah, for sure – I’ll say that,” Turner said. “Going against Cade and J.J., I would say it doesn’t get much better. Going into the game confident.”

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Michigan football defensive backs thriving off newfound confidence

They’ll be tested more than ever come Saturday night.

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ANN ARBOR, Mich. — When you’re a cornerback, you have to have a short memory. If you give up a big play, you have to quickly forget it and move onto the next.

But what about year over year?

Last season, the Michigan defense was the worst it’s been since the RichRod era, when it was near the bottom in most categories. Thus far this season, a year after being the 90th-rated pass defense, through five games the Wolverines are sitting at No. 16. It’s a huge turnaround, and third-year cornerback DJ Turner says that the big change has been in the group’s confidence — in themselves and in each other.

“We have a lot,” Turner said. “This year, you know the guy next to you is going to do their job. That’s just belief and confidence. Once you know the guy next to you is going to do their job, it’s just the energy of it.”

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A big part of that is also the coaching changes.

Michigan moved on from Mike Zordich, despite him fielding multiple top-rated pass defenses in his tenure. Last year, the front seven wasn’t getting much push, but this year, it is. Turner credits the entirety of the coaching staff for making it easier for the players to cover, as well as knowing better the nuance that he and his compatriots in the defensive backfield need to have on any given play.

Though there was an intermittent switch, as spring ball defensive backs coach Mo Linguist quickly departed for the Buffalo coaching post, with Steve Clinkscale in the fold, it’s made the unit better, Turner says.

“A lot, a lot comes from it. Listening to what has to say, you just take the coaching, he knows what he’s talking about,” Turner said. “Do what he says and you’re in the right spot to make a play.”

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But was this a group that didn’t have confidence? Turner says the newfound energy resurgence is real, and the downtrodden attitude wasn’t specific to the defensive backs.

“To a certain extent, but I think this was a whole team thing,” Turner said. “This team is just different this year.

“It’s hard to describe. It’s just on the team — you just feel it. It’s a different energy, the environment of being in Schem, being around the team. It’s just a different environment. It’s hard to describe.”

Michigan will certainly be tested this week when it travels to Lincoln to face an up-and-coming Nebraska at night. The Huskers have the No. 11 offense and 40th-rated passing offense — the highest the Wolverines will have seen thus far.

“Good offense, we’re gonna have to come locked in this week,” Turner said. “Another Big Ten dual-threat quarterback. We gotta come locked in, big environment.”

When it comes to taking down Adrian Martinez, Turner says the group must be prepared to be fundamentally sound.

“Just make tackles,” Turner said. “That’s the main thing, getting the quarterback to the ground.”

All that said, this team is not looking back. If it starts to find itself in trouble, there won’t be a ‘here we go again’ mentality, because they’re taking everything as it comes — game-by-game, week-by-week, snap-by-snap.

What happened in the past remains in the past, and that’s where the defense is content leaving it.

“At this point, we don’t even look at last year,” Turner said. “We just go week-by-week. Try to go 1-0 every week.”

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Where the Michigan football CB competition currently stands

Some really interesting stuff here! #GoBlue

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ANN ARBOR, Mich. — At Big Ten media days, when Michigan football head coach Jim Harbaugh sat at his hour-long podium session, he noted the players who had locked up starting roles entering fall camp. Though they would get that opportunity to run with the ones at first, it didn’t mean that they would finish there.

So, while Gemon Green had been the sole corner to have a proverbial ‘starting job’ throughout the offseason, new defensive backs coach Steve Clinkscale says hold on just a minute — that still has to be earned.

That’s not to say that Green won’t be the starter or that he hasn’t performed up to expectations. To the contrary, Clinkscale says that those in battle for positions within the secondary must continue to fight for their position on any given day. So, for now, there’s been a rotation, and along with Green, incumbent starter Vincent Gray and upstart third-year CB DJ Turner have separated themselves.

And there’s a chance they could stay locked in a three-way battle, even in the season.

“In life, nothing’s locked up,” Clinkscale said. “I tell the players all the time, if I don’t get my job done, there will be somebody here to replace me. You’ve gotta feel that pressure. So I’m rotating everybody. Get some of the young guys the opportunity to show what they can do. But those three – Gemon, DJ and Vince – have really set a rotation with each other. We’ve got a couple of other guys: George, he’s coming along – a couple other young guys. But there’s nobody, in my opinion, that is solid where they’re gonna be the guy, for sure. I feel like Gemon has done some really good things, I feel like Vincent has, DJ, as well as a couple of other guys. So I think the more we keep that where it’s a challenging situation (and) they’re always competing, I think we can elevate everybody’s game.

“And you need it. I’ve been in a conference where you can’t just play with two guys. You need two, three, four – you need guys to be able to build off it. Some games maybe are good matchups for one, maybe not the other. You continue to build off of that and put those guys in the right position. But I think what they all have done is they’ve shown me that they have the capacity to learn our defense. They have the ability to execute the things I know they can execute and I need them to execute and I’m excited about continuing to challenge them. And they’re accepting that challenge! It’s amazing – the attitudes. They take the coaching, there’s no talkback. Everybody goes down and executes anything I bring up during meetings. They go out and they fix it. I think in that aspect, I think everybody has the opportunity to show what they have.”

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We already have a pretty good idea of what Green and Gray bring to the table, but Turner is a player we’ve seen mostly only on special teams. Of what he’s seen from him specifically, Clinkscale notes: “He’s got great awareness. Physically he’s fine. He’s picking things up for us. He gives us another element, too. He’s very similar to Dax in that aspect in that he’s a guy that can play corner and nickel as well.”

Beyond that, Turner is eminently coachable, quick to learn and correct mistakes, and eager to improve on a daily basis, Clinkscale says.

“I coached a couple players that don’t make the same mistakes and DJ is one of those guys,” Clinkscale said. “He corrects himself and he challenges himself. When we were in a couple of situations, we were doing a two-minute situation, and they went after him a few times in a row, he defended the ball very well and he understood what was about to happen. He understands the situation. We just had a couple speakers in and a lot of people talk about visualizing and the mindset and the understanding and the knowledge of the game. And DJ is one of those young players, he has that as a characteristic. And I think you see it in his play in practice.

“I’m very excited about all of these young men – all the safeties, all the corners – I really am. But they all are really taking ownership and leadership. And, like DJ, they’re trying to continue to not make the same mistakes. That’s been our challenge, that’s been our goal. And he’s definitely a player that hasn’t made the same mistakes over and over.”

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